Tuesday, January 25, 2011

A study in Pickle Chicken

So a couple of weeks ago when Missy posted about Chick-fil-A I don't think many of you understand the deep love the two of us have for that restaurant. It's kind of funny...but I'm totally serious.

One day I was telling her about a friend who had seen me eating the Chick-fil-A sandwich and only half the bun and how she asked why I didn't just get the chicken strips. My response was that I thought they tasted different. Missy, who's brother who is the owner of the Chick-fil-A in American Fork, picked up her cell phone and called her brother right there on the spot. What we learned is that both the chicken breast and the chicken nuggets are brined in pickle juice and the strips are not. I thought this was so cool...I mean that I could actually taste the difference.

That evening when my husband came home from work I told him about it. He suggested doing it ourselves. And thus was created one of our families favorite dinners: Pickle Chicken.

Ingredients:
One large jar of dill pickles.
Chicken
Flour
Eggs
Panko Crumbs
Salt and Pepper

I use chicken tenders but you could use breast if you choose.
I usually unthaw 20-25 tenders in a large Ziploc bag. Once unthawed I pour ALL of the juice from the dill pickles into the Ziploc bag and let them marinate for several hours. All day would be good. The longer they marinate the more pickle taste you'll find.

When I'm ready to cook. I preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray two 9x13 pans with nonstick spray.

The breading process takes three bowls.
One with flour with salt and pepper in it.
One with 4+ eggs beaten
One with the Panko crumbs

Dredge the chicken through these bowls in the above order and place in pan.

Cook for 30 minutes or until no longer pink.

I serve mine with salad or a vegetable.

YUMMY! Don't substitute regular bread crumbs...Panko is the way to go.

12 comments:

  1. It's on the menu for next week. So excited.

    I've been craving chickled picken or pickled chicken ever since you mentioned it.

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  2. This is so funny! I have a sister-in-law who is in LOVE with Chick-fil-A. I will have to ask her if she knows the secret ingredient. Can't wait to try the recipe too, it sounds so yummy!

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  3. What a great idea to make your own! I need to try it :) Missy's brother is doing well... There are always a million cars at Chick-Fil-A!

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  4. There is not a Chick-Fil-A in Rock Springs. I wonder if there is one anywhere at all in Wyoming. So, I will be trying your Pickle Chicken recipe. Yum!!!

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  5. P.S. How many pounds of chicken is 20 to 25 tenders?

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  6. I just checked. There is one in Cheyenne, on the other side of the state. Or, going in the opposite direction, there are 11 of them in Utah. Coincidentally, my mother lives in American Fork. Next time I'm there, I will make a special trip to Chick-fil-A, in honor of Missy and her brother.

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  7. You girls are so cute! If you go to my brother's Chick-fil-a tell him you know me! (It won't get you far, but it will be fun.) :)

    Audrey, I can't wait to try your recipe this weekend!! Sounds delicious!

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  8. Missy, do you live in AF, too, or somewhere else?

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  9. The question I have for Audrey is, what do you do with all those pickles?

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  10. Becky, Missy use to hails from North Carolina. She recently lived here in Northern VA for about a year and is now living in Sunny Southern CA. I'm jealous. The two of us LOVE Chick-fil-A...

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